A new study on climate mitigation examines how different lifestyle choices can reduce personal greenhouse gas emissions and help contribute to the systemic change needed to keep global average temperatures below 2 degrees Celsius. The most effective way to cut carbon emissions, according to the researchers, will come as no surprise to Pop X readers: Have fewer children. Also near the top of the list are reducing meat and dairy consumption, switching to clean energy and minimizing carbon-intensive travel by avoiding long flights and ditching your gas-guzzler in favor of walking, biking and public transportation.

Earlier this year the book Drawdown came to similar conclusions about the most effective ways to fight global warming. It's certainly not too late to start — or do better.

For the wild,

Stephanie Feldstein
Population and Sustainability Director
Center for Biological Diversity

P.S. Today's world population is: 7,521,304,286. We can still save room for wildlife — spread the word and share this email.

Crowded Planet /Volunteer docents talk Endangered Species Condoms and carbon footprints with visitors at a Pillow Talk event at the Carnegie Science Center in Pittsburgh, Penn. Sign up to be a Pillow Talk docent at an event near you.

Population / Endangered Species Condoms for Senators

U.S. senators returned from their Fourth of July break to a special delivery: 600 Endangered Species Condoms, along with personalized letters to each senator either thanking them for supporting reproductive rights and family planning programs or criticizing them for prioritizing tax cuts for the wealthy over women's rights and the environment. The action coincided with World Population Day to draw attention to the connection between reproductive freedom, population and the wildlife extinction crisis.

And it worked. The condoms — and their message — were widely covered by the media, especially after Nebraska Republican Sen. Ben Sasse tweeted a photo of the packages he received in the mail. Check out this article in Bustle on "Why an Environmental Activist Organization Sent Senators a Bunch of Condoms."

Earth-friendly Diet / Fighting Food Waste

With 40 percent of food produced in the United States going uneaten, food waste is a problem that's going to require action at all levels, and USA TODAY recently wrote about some of the ways states are taking on the issue. In response to the article, senior food campaigner Jennifer Molidor writes that it's going to take more than waste restrictions and tax incentives to address food waste — we need to prevent it before resources are wasted on surplus food. Read her letter and stay tuned for actions you can take reduce your household waste and urge grocery stores to do their part to prevent food waste.

Shades of Green / #MoveTheDate

Cars are responsible for nearly 20 percent of our global carbon footprint. Just changing the way we get around can reduce the toll humans take on the environment significantly. Choosing to walk, bike or take public transit are all options that reduce our reliance on vehicles that run on fossil fuels. So this month, in the latest installment of Shades of Green, population and sustainability media specialist Jess Herrera is trying to put the brakes on her gas-guzzling ways.

Wild Energy / Recharging Rooftop Solar

Maximizing the solar potential of our rooftops is a solution that benefits the climate, wildlife and communities. And, as we've written before, several states have weak, nonexistent or bad policies that throw shade on the rooftop solar market.

In a recent editorial, Bloomberg View shines a light on one of the most common policy battles that can advance or obstruct rooftop solar: net metering. Bloomberg's editors not only explain why the claim that net metering shifts costs to other utility customers is misleading, but also argue that states must stop sowing uncertainty about solar. "Solar power should indeed be subsidized, relative to carbon-based energy — to protect against climate change and the lung-damaging pollution that comes from burning fossil fuels."

Take Action / Save Mexican Wolves

Trump's sham recovery plan for Mexican gray wolves is a roadmap for extinction. Send a message to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service insisting on a science-based plan.

Five Wild Picks / Ways to #MovetheDate

Earth Overshoot Day — the day when we've used up the amount of resources that the Earth can replenish in a year — lands on Aug. 2, almost a week earlier than last year. Here are 5 ways we can start reducing our debt to the planet to move the date in the other direction: